Ft Boni's IT park gets ecozone status

The P16-billion information technology (IT) park being developed by the Fort Bonifacio Development Corp. (FBDC) has been granted special economic zone status by the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) which entitles it to various incentives.

Dubbed as Silicon Alley, the 25-hectare park is located within the 164-hectare Fort Bonifacio Global City, and is the third IT park to be granted special economic zone status, after Northgate Cyberzone and Eastwood City Cyberpark.

Government does not grant special economic zone status to development parks within Metro Manila except for IT parks. Both Northgate and Eastwood are within the metropolis.

As a special economic zone, locators within FBDC's Silicon Alley will be entitled to a five percent tax on gross income instead of the usual 35 percent paid by corporations, while enjoying exemption from local government taxes and duty-free importation of raw materials and capital equipment.

FBDC said Silicon Alley would be developed over 20 to 25 years in two phases. The first phase would cover 17 hectares and the second would cover the remaining area, all involving projects that FBDC has been planning before the IT park was conceptualized and applied for classification as a special economic zone.

FBDC, said it is already discussing with a prominent property developer for joint venture arrangement to develop a portion of the park into the so-called Central Park Gateway.

The IT park would also have a residential portion dubbed Bonifacio Ridge which has been promoted as a middle income residential facility and is now earmarked as part of Silicon Alley.

The park would also include a tech-support zone to be developed as a service and support center to accommodate call centers, incubator offices, animation studios, web application developers and graphic design studios.

FBTC plans to construct an IT Plaza, intended as a catalyst project. To be developed over five years, the plaza would have the usual hotel facilities.

FBDC also included in Silicon Alley the Government Center for Investments, a complex that would house eight to nine key Philippine government agencies possibly including the Securities and Exchange Commission.